This is the first in a series of five question and answer sessions with the freshmen from the Golden Gopher women's gymnastics team. First up is Rachel Haines, a newcomer from Greenville, Mich. Rachel comes to the Gophers from Geddert's Twistars Gymnastics Club, one of the most prestigious gyms in the nation. Rachel is a two-time Junior Olympic National Championship qualifier and two-time Level 9 Eastern All Around Champion.

Gopher Sports: What do you love most about gymnastics?

Rachel Haines: Everything that I have learned and what makes me who I am came from gymnastics. My personality is definitely formed from the skills that I learned and my traits all come from gymnastics.

GS: Did you always know you wanted to compete at the college level?

RH: I did, I remember it would come on TV and I always thought that it was so cool and looked just really fun. It definitely became a goal for me at a pretty young age.

GS: When choosing a college what were some things you considered and what made Minnesota stand out to you?

RH: There were three things that I really looked at when considering a school. It was academics and where they ranked, definitely athletics and also the overall atmosphere. For me, Minnesota hit all three of those and I definitely felt at home here.

GS: Overall, what are you looking forward to most this year?

RH: Just getting a stronger bond with my teammates and making memories together with them. They are already a family I am just really excited to share these moments with them.

GS: Explain a little about your experience being a two time Junior Olympic National Championship Qualifier?

RH: The experience was really fun, I definitely have most of my gymnastics memories at those meets. The meets are really big and most compared to a college meet so it's nice to kind of have an idea of what's going to be going on at those meets. They are just overall really fun and I am glad I experienced those meets.